The Stuff of Romance
by legalronin
Summary: Former city dweller Tokio tries to find inspiration out in the country, but she finds far more than she expected. Too bad he's surly and not your typical hero type. Co-written with LilyKiss. A Saitou x Tokio AU. (Please forgive the cheesy title)
1. The Formula

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin and their likeness.

Lilykiss once suggested I write a Saitou x Tokio story set in the country. So when she also suggested we work on something together I automatically thought of the country (also helps that we both live out in the country).

I hope you enjoy this latest story! Chapter 1 and 3 will be written by me and Lilykiss will write chapter 2 and 4. At least that's the plan.

On to the story!

* * *

Takagi Tokio couldn't help but frown. So far her life in the country was playing out like a cliché romantic comedy. As an author Tokio knew the formula well, and it was a formula she stayed away from.

Tokio was no romance writer, but since her arrival in the country that was all she could think about. She blamed her editor, it was his idea after all, who suggested the move in hopes of inspiring her lazy muse. Tokio felt inspired alright, but not in any direction she wanted to go.

"Stop daydreaming and start the car." A voice droned out from under the hood of her car.

Tokio started and blushed, embarrassed to be caught staring off into nothing. "I wasn't day dreaming . . ." she mumbled.

"If you say so," was the amused reply.

But before anything else could be said Tokio decided to change subjects and asked, "What's the diagnosis?"

Saitou Hajime closed the hood of the car, and raised an eyebrow at the woman, "It's a piece of shit."

With one hand on her hip and another on top of the open car door, Tokio glared. "Well obviously, but can you fix it?" During their short acquaintance Tokio had come to learn that dealing with Saitou meant keeping all her wits about her.

"Sure."

Tokio looked at him expectantly but when he didn't reply she said, "Well?"

Saitou pulled a handkerchief from his back pocket and wiped his hands, "Gas station is a bit off from here. Do you have a gas tank in the trunk?"

Tokio let out a sigh, "I have a full tank of gas, why do we need gas? And how will that help?" Then pushing her sunglasses up on her nose said, "If you don't know what you're doing then just admit it."

Saitou eyed the shorter woman with some amusement, before smirking. "Start the car."

Tokio rolled her eyes and got into the car, mumbling about how that wasn't exactly an appropriate response to her statement but that she would show him.

Saitou couldn't help but chuckle as he went to stand by the driver's side, placing one elbow on the hood of the car and the other on the door's frame. For all his teasing, he was actually quite impressed. (Not that he would ever admit it.) Tokio had been living in the country for a few months now, and despite the unfamiliar territory she was doing her best. Which was more than anyone had expected.

Tokio, annoyed and unnerved by Saitou's cocky attitude, turned the key in the ignition and the car spluttered. She turned to Saitou, "It starts."

"Congratulations."

Tokio stuck her tongue out at the man before turning back. She triumphantly pointed out her gas gauge with the arrow sitting on the full mark.

Saitou, however, was not defeated. He reached in and flicked the gas gauge, causing the needle to fall onto empty. "You're out of gas." He said once more, grin in full force.

Tokio stared at the gas gauge and then felt her face heat up. "It said it was full . . ."

Drumming his fingers on the hood of the car, Saitou shrugged. "It happens. The needle gets stuck on old timers such as this."

Tokio groaned. "Great." Just what she needed.

"You own an old timer but you know nothing about cars," it wasn't quite a statement and not quite a question. Classic cars, such as the 1986 Mini Cooper Tokio drove around, were popular. But they tended to require constant maintenance and basic mechanic skills and weren't for everyone.

"I know that when the gas gauge says full, it means it's full." She snapped back but she couldn't quite meet his eyes. She could only guess how much he was enjoying this, city girl trying to make it out in the country, and failing at it.

It was just her luck that he had been witness to another error in judgment. An extremely embarrassing night that had involved mistaking a fox's scream for a human's, a slightly hysterical call to the local police station, and trying to beat an officer of the law with her rolling pin. And it was that very officer that happened upon Tokio, with her car dead on the side of the road and without a signal to place a call. If this were a romantic comedy, Saitou would play the leading man (And what an unlikely one he made).

But Tokio found nothing about her situation funny or romantic.

Tokio pushed her way past the officer, "Ok. At least that's an easy fix."

Saitou nodded.

Tokio peeked past her "hero" to his ride, an old tractor. " . . . so, to the gas station."

"It would seem so." Saitou bored tone belied the amusement in his eyes. He was willing to bet that Tokio had never ridden a tractor in her life, and was unwilling to do so now.

"You're supposed to be helpful and charming."

Saitou's lips quirked, almost into a smile, "Is that so? According to who?"

Tokio sighed, Why did he have to make everything such a struggle? "I don't know! The laws of literary construction?"

"I'll have to take your word for that. You are the writer." Saitou watched as Tokio rubbed the bridge of her nose. He knew he wasn't helping the situation but it was too much fun. Despite being a city girl, Tokio had learned surprisingly fast and had already settled herself into town.

Then rolling his shoulders back, Saitou moved out of the way and with mock gallantry he bowed. "Your chariot."

Tokio laughed despite herself. "I suppose that's an improvement."

"Hm. Don't get used to it." Saitou swiftly, and with the grace of someone accustomed to such things, climbed onto the tractor.

Tokio blinked and shook her head. Apparently there was no such thing as ladies first. She looked at the tractor with some trepidation.

"Put your foot on the step." Saitou instructed, holding his hand out for Tokio.

Tokio took the offered hand and blushed. Maybe he wasn't so bad, he just had his own charm. Tokio was far less graceful as she climbed the tractor, using anything that could be a foothold.

The tractor ride had to be the most uncomfortable thing ever, Tokio decided as she held on, and watched the road pass beneath her. Who would have thought that she would ever move out to the country and ride tractor? Tokio watched the countryside pass by slowly and sighed, life certainly was much slower in the country, literally and figuratively.

Saitou glanced over at the woman, and smirked. She was obviously nervous. Tokio saw him smirk and asked "What?" Only to find that she couldn't be heard over the roar of the tractor. It only made Saitou chuckle.

Tokio sighed and let her chin drop to her chest. Oh well, at least today's encounter with the man wasn't as embarrassing as the last. If she were lucky she wouldn't embarrass herself the next time she saw him.

* * *

Thank you for reading, please leave a review on your way out.

Fun fact, the first time I heard a fox's scream I thought it was a woman in distress. I had to google "fox scream" to see that indeed a fox. That and the fox showed up to my front door.

Tokio's car is actually inspired by my own car, except it wasn't a gas problem that killed it.

Stay tuned for Lilykiss's chapter!


	2. Always wear appropriate clothing

**Hi! This is LilyKiss speaking!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin or the characters, I'm just using them (with no shame, I have to say...). This story, the idea of it, is half mine (see Legalronin for the other part!).**

 **This is the second chapter, I did my best to be at Legalronin's level, I hope I succeeded! Tokio, Saitou, and a river. Seems like a good plan, no?**

 **Special thanks to Legalronin and her wonderful corrections, thanks to her you have been spared the pain of my orthographic mistakes. Despite my best efforts – and there is a visible improvement – I'm not quite bilingual yet...  
For those one who speak French, I have this translated in French (well, actually, my chapters are translated ****f** **rom French into English, but.. nevermind ^^) on my page! Don't hesitate to read it too!  
**

* * *

Tokio, sat in front of her computer, hands on the keyboard, a blank word processing page in front of her, sighed deeply. Nothing came to her. Oh, she had ideas, but nothing worth while.

Her first novel had been a huge success. And none of the stories she thought of since then could compare to it.

Tokio sighed again and looked out the window. Blue sky, warm sun, with an agreeable light breeze tempted her outdoors.

She stood, she wasn't going to get any ideas today, with the thought of taking a walk. She wouldn't have done that in the city, but, after all, she was here to try new things, right?  
She put a small water bottle and a cereal bar in a little backpack. It was weird to go out without everything she usually had in her purse. But, what was the use of lipstick in the middle of nowhere? Even her phone was useless, it never had signal.

It was a small town, and her new house was out in the outskirts. The forest was just behind her garden. Which explained the fox's screams. No, no, forbidden thoughts! She was too ashamed. She had nearly hit Saitou over the head with a rolling pin! But, who wouldn't have done the same? The officer on the phone laughed at her, and then some unknown man shows up at her front door, just after she heard terrible screams outside. She reacted like any smart city woman would have.

Except, here, it was the country. Here, you didn't disturb the police because a fox was screaming too loud.

Tokio walked on the side of the road. It was pleasant. After a while, she noticed a dirt road, branching off from the main road and into the woods. She realized, to her surprise, she wanted to be adventurous. What was the worst that could happen?

Saitou's face, with his usual smirk, came to mind. 'So, Takagi, you got lost looking for mushrooms? You know, it's not the right time of the year...' She could clearly hear him as if he were right there. The young woman bit her lip. The path was large and well maintained. There were even tracks made by tractor tires. If she didn't leave the path, nothing could happen, right?

You're not gonna let this... horribly rude and sexy man stop you from doing what you want, are you? She thought while she stepped onto the path.

As she walked, Tokio regretted not having her phone on her to take pictures. The landscape was beautiful, with mountains in the background and patches of fields and forest all around her. After few steps, the path had become a hill, and she was now on top of it. The scenery was worth the pain in her legs.

Tokio wondered what to do. Continue on or go back home? She shrugged. Now that she was here, she should go on. And the path led down the slope now.

Everything was so quiet and relaxing. After a while, the path turned, and was cut off by a river. It wasn't a big river, but the water would reach above her knees... She pouted. It was certainly a path used only by tractors, that could pass through the water without any problems. Suddenly, she saw something on the side of the path, half-hidden by the plants.

A plank, lay above the river. She raised an eyebrow. That was their bridge? Have people around here never heard of security?

Then she thought, 'it can't be that complicated.' The plank was large enough and it seemed solid enough. She checked that her backpack was well set on her shoulders before she climbed onto the embankment. "Ouch!" she cursed when her leg met a nettle. Maybe shorts wasn't such a good idea... Though, she succeeded in putting her foot on the plank without any further incident. The river wasn't very large, and she quickly reached the middle of it. The river flowed beneath her, at about fifty centimeters under her feet. Proud of herself, she was just about to continue when a voice spoke behind her.

"Are you training to become a funambulist in the circus, Takagi?"

Tokio started and turned around instinctively, her right foot attempted to find secure footing, unfortunately, she tried stepping onto air. She let out a ridiculous scream before falling into the river. After a moment of panic, she immediately straightened herself up, only to find herself sitting in the river, with water up to her chest, and wet from head to toes.

On the path, at the edge of the water, Saitou was smirking, of course. Being ridiculous in front of the man was the new black. He crossed his arms, silently mocking her, despite her glare.

"What are you doing here?" she grumbled tone full of hostility.

He raised an eyebrow. "I'm giving my parents a hand with the farm, remember? I was checking on the crops. Making sure they had enough water in this heat."

She blew air out of her mouth, unsettling a strand of hair that fell back onto her cheek with a wet noise. She was soaked.

Tokio pushed her hands against the river soil to get back on her feet. "And you thought it would be funny to scare me?"

She tried to imitate his posture, and crossed her arm under her chest. Saitou's eyes traveled down before coming back up to her face. He gave her an appreciative glance. Surprised, Tokio look down at herself. She understood why his eyes had looked where no 'hero' should look. Why the hell did she have the brilliant idea to put on a white shirt that morning? And to top it all off, why was her bra made of some transparent material, that was doing such a terrible job of hiding the consequences of her sudden bath?  
Her cheeks turned a violent red. She repositioned her arms, so that they crossed over her chest, doing her best to cover herself. She threw him a dark look. "Turn around," she ordered.

Saitou rolled his eyes, but did as she said. Keeping an eye on him, she removed her shirt, wrung it and put it back on. It didn't change much. She sighed, and folded the bottom of the shirt over her breasts, in order to give her assets a little more cover. Well, it was working. But now, everyone could see her belly – at least, she had no bulges – but the most important parts were hidden.

"Are you done? Or do I need to keep studying the trees?" Saitou asked, in a bored tone. The boor.

"You can turn around," Tokio said hesitantly because she really didn't want him to see her like this.

He turned around. She felt her cheeks heat up again when he looked at her.  
"Interesting solution," was all he said.

Tokio fought back. "You know, in general, chivalry dictates that the man offer his shirt to the damsel in distress."

He raised a mocking eyebrow. "Really? So you don't want me to see you in a soaked through shirt, but you'd like to see me bare-chested?"

Saitou knew that it wasn't kind to tease her that way, but he couldn't help it. From pink she turned crimson and started to mumble something incomprehensible. How cute.

After a while, he took pity on her. "It's 37°C in the shade. Your shirt will dry in two minutes under the sun."

Relief passed through her eyes when she saw that he wasn't intent on continuing the topic. They walked for a few meters in the shade, until they found the heat of the sun again.

Tokio sighed and lifted her head to the sky, eyes closed. These things only happened to her. Her life was looking more and more like a bad mushy novel. The damsel finds herself in a ridiculous situation and the knight in shinning armor happens upon her. Except her knight was creepy. What would it be next time?  
Her cheeks heated up again, just at the thought of what she currently looked like.

"You know, it's quite impressive to watch the different shades of red you go through in the span of a few minutes."

She turned abruptly towards Saitou. She opened her mouth to say something, but what could she say to that? In the end, she simply sighed. 'I've had enough for today,' she thought.

"I'll take you back?"

Tokio considered it for a minute. The jeans of her shorts were stiff and unpleasant against her skin, her hair were dripping down her back, and her shirt was... well, she preferred not to think about her shirt. Her shoes were making wet suction noises with each step, and the weight of her bag had doubled.

"How did you come here?"

"By tractor. It's in the field, not too far from here." He appreciated more than he should the despondent look in her eyes. "The carriage wouldn't have made it out here," he added, to rub it in. She looked at him, her gaze clearly vindictive. "Don't try to hit me again," he warned, remembering the rolling pin episode.

She blushed once again, before sighing. "Let's go to the tractor, so... "

He smirked, then bowed and let her pass before him on the path. Surely, he didn't have to tell her that her shorts too were form fitting when it wet? He would have lost a very charming view...

* * *

 **Voila!  
I took inspiration for the river from a place I know well, not too far from my home, deep in the countryside. It's very pleasant. And yes, the plank thing is true. And the nettles to, unfortunately. I've been stung more than once ^^**

 **Hope you like it guys, and don't forget to review, please! :)**


	3. Always drink responsibly

Disclaimer: You know the story; I do not own Rurouni Kenshin or their likeness.

LilyKiss is amazing, super sweet and patient. Work and preparing to move has taken over my life and LilyKiss has been incredibly patient as she waited for this chapter.

I am actually quite sad that this may be the last chapter I write for this co-written project. I hope you enjoy it. When I started writing chapter one it was in a tongue-in-cheek kind of way, but it always amazes me the way stories take a life of their own. So, I hope you enjoy it.

Please read and review. Also check out LilyKiss's translations.

(Please forgive typos and grammar)

* * *

Tokio groaned and turned away from the light, throwing the sheets over her head as she did. There was no way she felt prepared to face the day, not with the headache she had. What had possessed her to drink so much? Somehow, she was sure, it was all that man's fault.

 _"Slow down Takagi."_

 _Tokio put down her glass, turned around, and threw Saitou a haughty look, "Are you implying that I can't handle my drink?"_

 _"Implying?" Saitou looked Tokio up and down before raising an eyebrow, "Hardly. Simply trying to give out some friendly advice."_

 _Tokio tsked, "I am a grown woman. I don't need you counting my drinks."_

 _Tokio felt the hair on her neck rise and shiver run down her spine as Saitou leaned in, placed an arm on either side of her, and whispered into her ear, "Be careful Takagi, being out in the country does not guarantee your safety." Then with a wicked grin, Tokio didn't even have to turn around and look at him to know, he said, "I don't find sloppy drunks attractive."_

Tokio buried her head deep into her pillow, trying to hide from the memory. Whether it was his fault or not, Tokio was not proud of herself, not at all. She had proceeded to get very drunk in an effort to prove that she could handle herself. It had obviously not ended well.

It was at that moment that Tokio first heard the water running, the shower was on. The shower was on? Tokio froze. She smelled the sheets; they did not smell like her sheets. Or feel like her sheets. She hesitantly opened her eyes and peeked out from under the covers to a room that was most definitely not her room. She lay there for a minute before jumping out of bed; well, she would have jumped out of bed if she hadn't tangled herself up in the sheets. In her attempt to wrestle herself free she found herself falling out of the bed, Tokio screamed out and made to grab anything, instead she and the night stand came crashing to the floor.

The noise brought Saitou running from the bathroom, towel around his waist, and dripping wet. He took one look at the woman on the floor, wrestling with the tangled sheets, and sighed. He ran a hand through his hair only to find he still had shampoo in it, he frowned, "Of course you'd fall out of bed."

Tokio, stopped wrestling, and threw the man a glare, "What do you mean 'of course?'" For the second time that morning, she froze, her worst fears becoming a reality. Tokio looked at Saitou, really looked, and went bright red, shouting, "Why are you naked?!"

Saitou raised an eyebrow and flatly said, "I was showering."

Her eyes went wide as a thought occurred to her; Tokio peeked under the covers to determine her own state of dress only to pull the covers up to her chin.

Saitou wanted to laugh, he would have if he wasn't practically naked and completely unsure were this would go, instead he said, "Are you going to sit on the floor all morning?"

Tokio response was to throw his pillows at him, "Pervert! You call yourself an officer of the law?! Taking advantage of a drunk woman!"

"OY!" Saitou dodged the pillows, one hand keeping the towel closed, he growled at the woman on the floor. "What's wrong with you?!"

"You're naked AND I am wearing one of your shirts, that's what's wrong!" Tokio's face was flaming. She pulled the sheets even higher so Saitou could only see her accusing eyes. How did she find herself in these situations, she wondered. And why did he look so good? This wasn't like her at all.

Saitou grabbed one of the pillows and threw it back at the woman, not really aiming for her though. "Are you done?

"Pervert." Tokio continued to glare at him.

They glared at each other for a few minutes, each challenging the other. It was Tokio who broke it off first by saying, "Confess. You're a pervert."

Saitou smirked, completely throwing Tokio off, and said, "You threw yourself at me."

"What?" All Tokio could do was blink, he had to be lying. Right? But the infuriating man simply chuckled and walked back to the shower.

Tokio sat on the floor a little longer before slowly picking herself up, trying to clear her muddled head. What happened last night?

 _Saitou sat beside Tokio. "You shouldn't drink alone."_

 _Tokio turned to face Saitou, placing her chin on her fist, "Are you offering your company?"_

 _Saitou's grin was wicked but before he could say anything Tokio rolled her eyes and said, "I didn't mean it like that."_

 _"Of course not." He chuckled. It was quiet for a few minutes but not in an awkward way. The silence would probably have stretched on much longer if curiosity hadn't gotten the better of Tokio._

 _"Saitou Hajime, officer of the law and farmer. Quite the busy man, aren't you? Are you sure you have time to sit here with me?"_

 _"One night won't hurt. Consider it part of my duties to ensure you arrive home safely."_

 _Tokio laughed and shook her head. "Sure." After a short pause she turned fully towards the man and demanded, "Tell me about yourself."_

 _"There's not much to tell."_

 _"That's not really an answer."_

 _"Sure it is."_

 _"Are you always so infuriating?"_

 _Saitou grinned, "You tell me."_

 _Tokio glared at the man, wondering why she put up with it all. "It's no wonder you're divorced." Tokio froze, her drink halfway to her mouth, her eyes grew wide, and she cast Saitou a cautious look. She was surprised to see the amusement in his eyes._

 _Saitou leaned in and in a whisper he said, "Why don't you tell me what you've heard?"_

 _Tokio couldn't help blush, it had to be from the alcohol and not at all related to him, right? " . . . Nothing."_

 _Saitou chuckled, the woman was something else, she was constantly amusing him. "I don't care what the rumor mill says. You shouldn't believe everything they say." He took a drink. "They're right about one fact though, I am divorced. We were young. That's all there is to it." He wasn't sure why he said it but he did._

 _Tokio looked into her glass, embarrassed by what she had said. She cleared her throat and said, "You already know everything about me. I am a writer with serious writer's block."_

 _"That's not all there is."_

 _Tokio smiled, she couldn't help but want to tease the man. "That's almost sweet for you."_

That had been the start of the night; they had ended up talking, teasing, and joking the rest of the night. Tokio bit her lip, buried her face in her hands, and groaned. It was a blurry mess but she did remember being too drunk to make it home, going to his place where she had kissed him, but that was it.

Saitou walked out in sweats and a basic t-shirt. "Bathroom's free."

Tokio was suddenly uncomfortably aware that she was still in his shirt and at his place. ". . . I should be going home."

Saitou chuckled and motioned to her clothes on a nearby chair.

Tokio stayed where she was for a moment before making up her mind. She walked up to Saitou, placed her hands on her hips and tilted her head back. "Why am I wearing your shirt?"

"You needed something to sleep in." Saitou drawled, towel drying his hair.

". . . Did anything happen last night?"

"Besides heavy drinking? No."

Tokio nodded, she thought as much. "You lied," she said. Still trying to feel out where she and Saitou were at after last night.

"Did I?"

Tokio nodded again, "You said I threw myself at you"

Saitou stopped what he was doing and looked down at the woman before him. Curious to know where this was going. "You did, you kissed me."

"And here I thought you were a take action kind of guy." Tokio walked off to the bathroom leaving Saitou stunned.

* * *

Stay tuned for LilyKiss's chapter 4!


	4. Watch what you say

**Hi! LilyKiss here!**

 **So, after a lot of thought, I wrote this final chapter. Well, final, in the way that it's ending those first four chapters, because legalronin and I are not ready to see these two go and we're certainly gonna write some extra chapters (epilogue, short stories...)!**

 **Big, big thanks to legalronin for proof reading this! And also a big thanks for helping me with all of this. She had the hard part, writing the first chapter, that gave me everything I needed to write! :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin or the characters.**

 **Hope you enjoy it!**

* * *

Four days later, Tokio couldn't stand the country anymore. She was used to the city, where no one knew anything about anyone. But here? Everyone knew everything about everyone. Including the fact that she had spent an _entire_ night at Saitou's place (after a long night of drinking at the only bar in town).

There were plenty of rumors flying around.

Everyone was asking "So... You and Saitou...?" Nobody believed her when she tried to deny it. So, to avoid people, as much as anyone could, she stayed home. Before, when she lived in the city, that wouldn't have bothered her. Hell she usually spent her entire day locked up in her apartment, writing! Except her muse was still on holiday, and Tokio had taken up the habit of being outside. Needless to say, she was restless.

She was currently pacing up and down like a caged lion. It didn't help that she hadn't seen Saitou since that fateful night, and she was starting to worry. What if he didn't want to see her? What if he thought she was a drunk? It was all so stupid: she had locked herself up in her own house. How was she going to run into him? On top of that, her publisher had called to "see how she was doing"; in fact her publisher was checking up on the new book. In short, she was really down.

She went out into the garden to pick up the post. Bills, for the most part. However among all the bills there was one strange envelope, completely blank and stampless, Tokio frowned. Someone other than the postman must have put it in her letterbox. It felt like there was something in it. Intrigued, she opened it, the other letters tucked under her arm. She slid the contents out into her hand.

Tokio stood frozen to the spot for a long time, trying to organize her thoughts. It was her earring, but how...? Then she remembered. It was the earrings she had on that night. She hadn't realized they were missing. But where was the other one?

She looked in the envelope and found a folded note. She unfolded it, hands shaking. There was only one person who could have had her earrings.

Yup.

She read the single line written out on the paper. ' _The other one is at my place. I'm there until 1 PM. You better hurry.'_

The touch of annoyance she felt when she understood it was another one of Saitou's game disappeared as a wave of relief washed over her. He still wanted to talk to her!

She hurried back into the house, throwing the letters onto the couch, and running to the clock. It read a quarter to one. She had to hurry. Who knew how long the envelope had been in her letterbox? Today, for sure, but when? How long had he been waiting for her? Was he waiting?

Tokio ran to her bedroom, opened the closet and quickly changed into her old sweats. She had been far too down to wear nice clothes and put on make up this morning. Or to even do her hair. Right now, she was in a hurry so she just combed her hair and left it down. No time for makeup.

Saitou lived quite far from her house, and her car was currently at the garage. A broken radiator hose, apparently. She was going to have to go by foot.

She put on the first shoes she saw on her way out – a pair of flip-flops – took the note and the earring in her hand, and ran down the street, without even thinking to lock her door.

Saitou threw the clock a sinister look. Ten to one. Would she come? He didn't really know what had possessed him to send the note. He had expected to cross her path during the last few days. Their paths always crossed, whether he wanted them to or not. Then, he learned from her neighbor – a friend of his mother's – that the woman had locked herself up in her house, trying to avoid persistent rumors. He grew up in this village, and knew how fast rumors started. He just didn't care, but for Tokio it was obviously a different story.

Then, he had this stupid idea to force her out. Betting on the fact that she still wanted to see him. She had removed her earrings, in an alcoholic fog, so she could sleep – by the way, even drunk, she was cute – and had put them on the night stand, where they fell, forgotten, on the floor, when she fell from the bed.

He never knew which way the wind was blowing with this woman. One moment she's acting the prudish girl, and next she's teasing him. Telling him, "And here I thought you were a take action kind of guy".

He was still stunned. He had spent hours going round in circles, waiting for the woman to show up. Five to one. She wasn't coming. He sighed and grabbed his car keys. It was his day off, but his parents needed help on their farm. And he needed to think of something other than this city writer.

He was reaching for his jacket when he heard a knock at the door. Some insane hope flooded over him and he hurried – if it wasn't for his pride, it would have been called a run – to the door.

Tokio stood on his doorstep completely breathless, hair a complete mess, and shoes in her hand.

"Sorry I'm late," she panted.

His initial surprise gone, Saitou recovered his usual sarcastic tone. "You know, shoes are made to be worn not carried."

She threw him a dark look, still trying to catch her breath. "Have you ever... tried to... run with flip-flops on?" _I must look like an asthmatic seal,_ she thought She had run as fast as she could, sacrificing her dignity on the alter of...what exactly?

Saitou didn't think he had ever worn flip-flops, but instead of answering with his usual snark he said, "Some water?" She nodded with enthusiasm.

Water. Perfect.

"Come in."

Too busy trying to breathe Tokio entered the house without really thinking about what she was doing. He motioned towards the living room with his hand. She went there and let herself fall on the couch, exhausted. Honestly, she would have done anything for the man. Her! The girl who had only done sports during her school days, and, even then, under duress.

Saitou shook his head, smiling in front of the woman's exhaustion, feeling oddly satisfied to see her like that. After all, she just ran to him. She wouldn't have done that simply for an earring, right?

He went into the kitchen, opened the fridge and took out a bottle of water. He was just opening a cupboard to grab a glass when he heard a scream.

Saitou ran back into the living room and found Tokio, in a corner of the room, obviously terrified. He frowned, as he got closer, "What's going on?"

"A spider," she stumbled out. She nervously grabbed Saitou's wrist. He raised an eyebrow, no longer worried.

"How long have you lived here now? You can't tell me this is the first time you've seen a spider."

Tokio didn't even notice his mocking tone. "Not one that big! I hate when they're so big! Do something!"

Saitou followed her gaze, and discovered the offensive subject. He had to confess it was one hell of a spider. "I'm not killing it. They're very useful to the ecosystem." He couldn't help it. She was too fun to tease. He quickly became serious when he saw the fear in her eyes. This was a real phobia.

"I don't care! Take her out. Send her to Patagonia or into deep space, but take her away!" Even though she was trying to control herself, her words were a bit hysterical.

He moved towards the spider. "Not with your hands!" she shouted.

He held back a sigh. Honestly, with what then? She handed him the folded note that took him an entire hour to write, picking his words with caution, after writing a dozen rough copies. Really? He took the paper, succeeded in convincing the spider to climb onto it – the spider was really sweet – and set her outside.

"Feeling better?" he asked, turning towards her.

She was looking around her with a worried look. "Are there any others?"

He didn't tell her that there were probably dozens of them – it was an old house. He wasn't that evil. He shrugged. "I don't think so."

"You think or you're sure?"

He smirked, "I think."

"Great." She threw him a dark look and moved cautiously in his direction, as if a spider would suddenly out jump in front of her.

It wasn't until Tokio was about two paces from him that she lifted her eyes from the floor to look at him. They looked at each other for a while. Then Tokio broke the silence with, "My earring?"

For once Saitou found it hard to speak, he nearly choked on his words. She was driving him crazy. One step forward, two steps back. Saitou leaned down to be closer to her. "I don't believe that you ran all this way just for an earring."

She tensed. He was calling her bluff. "They have sentimental value."

He rolled his eyes. "On the kitchen table."

She gazed at him for a while, before turning and walking towards the kitchen.

Saitou called out to Tokio, stopping her. "And not even a thank you for the spider? And here I thought you liked the take action kind of guy."

Tokio froze. Damn it. She knew she shouldn't have said that. At the moment, she had been proud of her gibe. But now? She felt like it was going to blow up in her face. But, maybe, somewhere deep down, she was expecting that...

She wanted to turn towards him, but his arms around her waist stopped her from doing so. He had crept up behind her and she hadn't even noticed. Her breath caught, he was so close.

"Too much?" he whispered into her ear.

"Or not enough..." she whispered back.

She really needed to see a doctor. She felt like she had two very different personalities. The one that let Saitou get the upper hand, and the one who made things worse. And she couldn't get the depraved girl in her head to stop.

Saitou made her turn towards him. He stared at her. Tokio gulped, she had the strangest impression that she was the rabbit in front of a hungry wolf. A sexy wolf. And, to be honest, if the bunny's legs were shaking it wasn't because of fear.

He leaned in towards her, his lips brushing hers. Tokio tilted her head back and tried to deepen the kiss. Saitou didn't need to be told twice. One of his hands found its way into her hair, and the other drew her in so that she was pressed up against him.

She moaned and raised her hands to frame his face in a desperate move. She was close to tearing his shirt off when someone knocked at the door.

Saitou groaned, completely ignoring the door, and deepened the kiss even further. The door opened.

"Hajime, are you still there honey?" asked a feminine voice.

Saitou broke the kiss and set his forehead against Tokio's with a sigh. Both of them were breathless.

"I'm going to kill her," he growled, hearing footsteps coming their way.

"Who is it?" Tokio asked, thinking that she should move away from him, but apparently unable to do so.

"My mother." He straightened up and waited for the hurricane.

Tokio turned pale, then red, and then pale again. She tried to put her hair in order, but her run AND Saitou's hands had ruined all her chances of being presentable. So, all she could do was adjust her clothes, suddenly very stressed.

"Hajime? Where are you? Oh! Here you are."

Saitou's mother was a beautiful woman – now Tokio knew from whom he got those yellow eyes of his. Her smile only grew when she saw Tokio.

"Come on, Hajime! You could have introduced us!"

He didn't even try to tell her that he had no chance seeing as how she had barged into his house. He knew it would be in vain. She didn't even give him a chance to respond she just kept on talking.

"You must be Tokio! I've heard so much about you dear!" Before Tokio had a chance to draw breath, she was wrapped up in a mum bear hug.

"Mum!"

"What?" She let go of Tokio to face her son, hands on hips. His mum's inquiring look glanced at him, then at Tokio, before coming back to him. When he saw her little smirk, he understood she knew _something_ had happened.

"I was hoping you weren't gone yet. Your father sent me. He needs a motor piece for the tractor. I'm coming with you to buy it!"

Saitou sighed inwardly. That meant he had to go into the city. It was a two-hour trip. Without counting his mother's numerous stop into shops along the way. If she wanted to come with him, it meant she had something to buy. He was going to have to spend his afternoon following her around.

He liked his parents. Really. But it was better for everyone if they didn't live together. That was why he had moved into this house instead of staying with them at the farm.

"I'm coming. Can you wait in the car mum?"

She gave him a look. Crap. The trip was going to be very long. Then she shrugged and hugged Tokio again. "I'm glad to finally meet you, dear!" In a whisper, she added, "He must really care about you. Usually, he wouldn't dare face his mum."

Tokio lost her voice, but succeeded in smiling, a bit shaken by all those yellow eyes. Saitou and Tokio watched his mother walk out the room. They heard the door close.

"I swear, I'm going to kill her."

"She's charming." Tokio wasn't really sure what she felt towards the woman, but she didn't think that she could ever hate her.

Saitou sighed. "I knew it. That you would get along famously with her."

Tokio raised an eyebrow, "And that's a problem?"

"Yes. Especially when she starts telling you about my life starting with her twenty-three hours of labor."

Tokio laughed, "I can't wait to hear that."

He shook his head and pulled her towards him so he could kiss her.

"Are you coming over for dinner?" she asked, the depraved girl was back in control.

"As long as the rolling pin is locked away somewhere."

She rolled her eyes and he took the opportunity to kiss her again. They remained like that until the car horn blasted.

"I'm really going to strangle her one day."

Tokio giggled, "Go get this tractor piece." _And me_ , she mentally added, _I have work to do. The house is a mess, the fridge is empty and the linen basket is overflowing_.

Saitou arrived soon before eight pm, with a bottle of wine. Dinner was a success – Tokio had spent the better part of her afternoon cooking, between two loads of laundry and running the vacuum cleaner.

Tokio was feeling a bit awkward though. Their earlier kiss seemed so... natural. She had been on cloud nine the whole afternoon. But now that he was here, she didn't really know how to act.

Saitou helped her clean the table and put the dishes in the sink. She moved away to turn on the tap, when he grabbed her by the waist to press her against him.

"What's wrong?" He didn't add the 'again', but it was implied. Tokio pinched his hand.

"Nothing Hajime. It's just that... I wasn't really sure that... No matter."

Saitou laughed. "Calling me 'Hajime' now?"

Tokio mentally cursed herself. It had been a slip of the tongue. And, of course, he wasn't going to let that go.

"Sait-" she started, before realizing it was useless to continue that way. "Hajime, please..."

He laughed again. It wasn't a bad feeling to have his breath against her neck as he laughed. In fact, it sent chills up and down her spine.

"Call me whatever you want honey."

She almost choked. "Honey?" she muttered, afraid that she was dreaming things.

He made her turn towards him, hands still around her waist. "Tokio...I... I don't know where all of this is going to end, but for now... I want to be with you."

Her eyes widened in response to his frankness. It was obvious that it hadn't been easy for him to say that. She smiled. "Well, that's great. Me too."

He smirked and leaned in. She put her arms around his neck to get closer. His lips met hers, first softly, then with more strength. It should have been the perfect kiss. She wasn't drunk, and there was no intrusive mother around.

And it was perfect.

Until a fox started screaming outside.

Saitou smiled against her lips, and Tokio blushed. Damn fox. It was for certain now, she was never going to be their friend. She leaned back so that she could look at him.

"I forbid you to laugh."

She was wasting her time. He was in stitches. She smiled, despite her best effort not to. "Really?"

"Really." He brought her back against him. "Please, don't fetch the rolling pin."

She slapped him gently on the forehead. "Shut up and kiss me." He looked at her briefly, with his wolfish eyes, before he did as instructed.

He didn't know where all of this was going, but for now, he hoped it lasted as long as possible.

*****  
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So, this is the end. At least, for now! Hope you liked it! And don't forget to review, my friends!**

 **Note from LegalRonin: Sorry for the delay (I am always saying that, aren't I?) I am preparing to move and it's stressful and time consuming. I had a lot of fun proofing this chapter and hope you enjoyed it. Lilykiss did a great job and I am left wondering if Saitou's mother heard the rumors and what she thought about them. One of the challenges of translating a chapter (Lilykiss and I talked about some of the challenges) and the same goes for editing is, keeping the author's tone and feeling.**


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